On 10/28/05 13:43 ET, michaeljc70 said...
I am not worried about the bitrate as my stand
alone MP3 is already playing the same files the
PC would play.
I don't want to get into a discussion about bitrates
here, but my opinion is that most people's equipment
and ears aren't good enough to notice the difference
from a decently encoded mp3 (128MBPS or higher).
I encode mine at 160KBPS. If you can tell the
difference with your ears/epuipment, then knock
yourself out and don't compress.
Michael,
The difference between good so8nd cards and the ones that are included are the generally boils down to the quality of the audio DACs. As BCF said, the better cards also have digital ins and outs.
Better cards are compatible with 24 bit with 96 kHz or even 24 bit / 192 kHz resolution signals, and even DD, DTS, and DVD-A multi-channel signals for both input and output. These are really more for surround sound gamers and desktop audio workstation (DAW) use for people who record and mix music on PCs. For DAW applications, you want to keep the signal at the highest resolution possible before sending it off to mastering.
Red Book CD standard is 16 bit with 44.1 kHz resolution.
I believe that you can also get upsampling sound cards that take any 16/44.1 files and make a poor man's Meridian or dCS system... but you would need uncompressed files to start with to fullyt realize the benefits.
If you and your clients are satisfied with 160 kbps MP3 encoded media, then the difference between a 16 bit / 44.1 kHz DAC and a 24 bit / 192 kHz upsampling DAC will be lost on them.
Even DACs of that quality will not replace bits that have been deleted by the compression process.
Audio interpolation in the upsampling process is similar to scaling a low resolution video signal for use on a high resolution display. No matter how advanced the techology may be, the end result depends on the quality of the data it starts with.
I am listening to some 320 mbps music right now.
I have 200+GB of music on a FireWire drive plugged into my laptop. I use iTunes to serve the files, and the laptop came with a 24/96 DAC and an 1/8" stereo jack.
I have an 1/8" to 2x RCA adapter feeding some $20 interconect to the AUX input of my little NAD 7225PE stereo receiver. A pair of little bookshelf Boston Acoustics mini monitors on the shelf above my monitor supply the sound.
It's fine for me now, and with the real amp and decent speakers, it sounds better than the actual CDs would on most shelf systems.
This message was edited by 2nd rick on 10/28/05 16:24 ET.
